Chennai: Public works department minister Aadhav Arjuna on Friday directed all civic and infrastructure agencies to complete pending northeast monsoon preparedness works before the onset of rain. Stormwater drains, canal restoration, road relaying, and flood mitigation measures should be expedited to prevent waterlogging across the city and its suburbs, he said.Chairing a review meeting at the secretariat in the presence of chief secretary M Sai Kumar, the minister reviewed preparedness by Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC), water resources department (WRD), highways department, Chennai Metro Rail Ltd (CMRL), Metrowater, Tangedco, and the Tambaram and Avadi corporations.The minister instructed GCC to complete the remaining canal improvement works, finish 1,128m of missing stormwater drain links at 115 locations, desilt 1,675km of drains, lay 1.09 lakh silt traps, and ensure roads cut for utility works are restored immediately.He also directed officials to keep 215 relief centres, rescue boats, pumps, medicines, and medical teams ready; address complaints received through the 1913 helpline; repair faulty streetlights; and clear garbage promptly. He directed WRD to complete desilting and flood-prevention works, including maintenance of the Buckingham Canal, Cooum and Adyar rivers. The highways department was asked to complete major drainage projects on Medavakkam-Sholinganallur Road, OMR, ECR, and Inner Ring Road, while ensuring that roads are restored immediately after excavation.CMRL was instructed to complete canal crossings and restore stormwater drains affected by Metro works. Metrowater was told to operationalise online monitoring at 87 sewage pumping stations and keep generators, pumps and sewage tankers on standby. Tangedco was directed to complete flood mitigation works, with officials noting that 12,499 low-lying distribution boxes have been raised, 9,546 damaged pillar boxes have been repaired, and 7,819 exposed underground cables have been rectified. Tambaram and Avadi corporations were also asked to complete all pending stormwater drain work, water supply and sewerage works before the monsoon.
